El camí va al refugi.

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Breakdown of El camí va al refugi.

• anar: to go
• el refugi: the mountain shelter
• el camí: the path or way

Questions & Answers about El camí va al refugi.

Why is it el camí and not just camí?

In Catalan, it is very common to use the definite article with nouns when you are talking about a specific thing, just like in English the path.

So:

• el camí = the path
• camí by itself = path or a path, depending on context

Here, el shows that we mean a particular path.

Why is it el and not la?

Because camí is a masculine noun in Catalan.

• el is the masculine singular definite article
• la is the feminine singular definite article

So:

• el camí = the path
• la ruta = the route

You usually have to learn the gender of each noun as part of the word.

What does va mean here?

Va is the third-person singular present tense of the verb anar, which means to go.

So literally:

• va = goes

In this sentence, though, it does not mean that the path is physically moving. It means the path goes to, leads to, or runs to the refuge.

That is a very natural way to speak in Catalan, just as English can say This road goes to the village.

Why does Catalan use for a path?